Broken Mirrors
by darkchick49
Summary: When you lose everything, when life seems to shatter like glass, what do you do? For Nighten Winters, losing her parents and finding that there is no one to answer her questions, what is she to do? Will she break or will the truth be revealed?
1. Beginning of the End

_I don't remember much about what had happened when I was younger. Why my mother and father were always running off, never quite telling me what was going on, or why they would come home, covered in battle wounds, or why they smelled like gun powder, I never quite understood it...not until I got older anyway. _

_I didn't understand a lot of things when I was still young, still naive, still **stupid**. But I do know this now, things are never as they appear to be, people can't be trusted, and those you do trust, will break your heart and leave you broken and left to wonder why or rather what you did wrong. Questions left unanswered, answers that don't make sense, the world crumbling apart and ripping at the seams, when life seems like a bad dream that you can just...wake up from. _

_I remember all of this, every gritty detail, and I remember everything as if it were yesterday.  
_


	2. Questions Sending

_((Hello all :D I'm sorry for the delay on the story. Senior year has been sooo hectic. With graduation on the horizon, I can't help but be busy ^^; But still, I will certainly try and keep the chapters coming. For those of you who don't know, this story will **not** have Kaname, Zero, Yuki, or any of your other favorite VK characters. This story takes place several years and the future is in danger. The vampire and human war has escalated to new heights and the treaty bringing the two groups together is fragile. Vampires hate the humans due to the incident at Cross Academy where a student was killed on campus. The treaty was amended,and it no longer favors the vampires, but rather the humans. So yeah ^^; just a brief little back story. Anyway, I hope people continue to read and review. Thank you all so much! Much love ~Dark))_

Chapter one: Questions sending

**6:30 pm Before the party**

"Nighten are you almost ready my dear?" A voice came from behind the heavy wooden door where Nighten had retreated.

"Yeah, I just have to put on my makeup,"she called back, her eyes locked on the door, until she heard the withdraw of her grandmother. Cyan eyes turned back to the vanity mirror, covered in different odd pieces of jewelry, clothes and scattered make-up. Looking at her own reflection, the lavender banged, brunette tried to understand why her parents didn't come home that night two years ago, why they didn't send word. Or why the Hunter's Association didn't find anything, why they wouldn't let her into the archives to see what her parents had done that made them so hated.

All of these question buzzed about in her head and made her headache that had dulled to an annoying hum return with a vengeance, like nails against a chalk board. No one would tell her anything, and she had to pretend that her questions weren't important.

"Just think Nighten,"the girl smiled down at her slender, long fingered hands that lay in her lap, surrounded by an ocean of crimson fabric "You only have two years after this to deal with people not answering your questions". The silk gloves that covered over her black finger nails made Night sigh. Just another dress to the countless that her grandmother constantly bought for all of their parties.

Pulling herself from the green and black checkered stool, Night went over to her closet and pulled a pair of simple black high heels that laced around her ankle. A small bow on the inside of her leg on each shoe was the only thing that made them stand out.

Making her way over to her messy bed, which she had yet to make, Night sank down and watched her crimson dress poof up and look like she were in a red cloud. With an annoyed sigh, Night pulled one of her feet up and began to put on her shoes.

When the shoes were on, she made her way towards the door and exited her room, shutting the door tightly behind her. She already missed the solitude of her bedroom. The semi Lolita style. Lots of lace, different colored checkered things, the four poster bed that she loved to simply lay on and day dream on. She wanted to hide in her room, or at least try and find the answers to her questions in her dreams.

Since the two years that she had been with her grandparents, she had been having these dreams. Dreams of a boy with ebony hair, dressed in a black and white kimono, his hair pulled back into a lose ponytail, a fan in his hand; decorated with cranes and koi fish. Within said dreams, the boy never turns around, and Night never seems to be able to see his face. But he speaks to her, keeps her company, tells her that she is not alone in this struggle against people who will not tell her things that she desires to know. She knows that whenever she is close to waking up, he is about to say something about her parents , no matter what she does, she never gets a chance to hear the answers.

Making her way down the grand stairs case, her hand placed on the brass and marble railing as she descends, the questions and the boy buzz around in her head. Why can she never see his face, why can't she ever get answers. Did her parents really do something so bad that...even her own mind will not tell her? Did they do something so horrible that heaven denies her the answer? Regardless, her questions and such are to be forgotten, her grandmother expects her to behave. To be the proper lady that she was taught to be.

"Good evening Chairmen Kurama, it is lovely to see you again," Abagail's voice made Night look up and put on her 'I'm perfectly happy' smile, the smile that she has had to force on for two years now.

Making her way over to the chairmen, his wife and his only daughter, Night kept the smile plaster to her glossy lips. "It is wonderful to see you again, your presence has been missed." Abigail nodded, "Of course it has, especially yours Akina. Night won't stop talking about how she misses playing with you." A little girl with silvery hair, pulled back into a braid, kept a firm hold on her beautiful China doll, the sapphire blue glitter of the marble eyes made Night almost jealous. When the young child looked up with stunning amber colored eyes, Night smiled down at the girl, before she sank down to her knees, the crimson dress again looking like a red cloud.

"Did you really miss me Night?" The little girl's voice was so soft it was almost hard to hear.

"Of course I missed you, I missed Ai too." The dolls name, though somewhere deep down, something felt a little creepy. When Night's cyan eyes looked back to the little girl, a wide, happy smile adorned her inhumanly pretty face. Pulling one arm away from her doll, the little girl pulled herself towards Night and laced her arm around her bare neck. Night, being the kind person who loved child, simply smiled and picked the child up, even though the girl's mother, Etsu growled to the girl to let go of Night.

"It's alright Mrs. Kurama, I love your daughter, she's like a little sister to me." Etsu just smiled, though behind her perfect smile there was a sneer.

"Mr. and Mrs. Kurama, please take a seat, my house is your house." The family walked away slowly, gracefully, like all vampires. Night, sinking back down to her knees,and put the little girl back onto her feet, the girl, let go. She smiled up again at Night, "Promise to play with me later?"

She never spoke like a child, it was hard to believe that this girl was five, but yet talked like she was eleven. With a gentle smile, Night nodded, "Of course."

"Cross your heart?" Night giggled and nodded. Reaching up one of her gloved hands, the girl brought her finger up to the left side of her chest and crossed where her heart was, "Cross my heart." With those words were spoken, the little girl ran off after her mother and father.

Pulling herself back up, Night sighed heavily and looked over towards her grandmother. "She really does like you, in fact, that is why the Kurama family is offering to fly you to Japan and go to Cross Academy."

Night blinked quickly, "What?"

"You heard me, Mr. Kurama wants to send you to Japan so he can help you find your parents. He knows the toll it is taking on you, and he can see that you aren't happy, that something is bothering you." Night snickered and shook her head, "I didn't think it was that obvious."

Another guest came through the door. A tall man with slicked back black hair, wearing a black suit, Armani, and a red silk scarf. A little color.

"Marcus!" Abigale smiled widely and embraced the man, his crimson brown eyes locked on Nighten. "My god, you've grown up." He smiled, pulling away from Night's grandmother, the young man made his way over to her.

He was cute yes, but he was three times her age, she imagined that he was at least in his hundreds, but kept that beautiful twenty year old beauty. Reaching down to Night's hand, Marcus brought it up to his lips and kissed the the back of her hand. Disgusting.

"It's wonderful to see you again Marcus, my grandmother won't stop talking about how you and I could possibly be a 'thing'." Night knew that Marcus was a pure blood, one of the most rare of his kind. She also knew that he liked her, more than just a friend. She still didn't know why, she was human, a human who's parents were known for killing vampires slowly and enjoying it.

Snapping back into reality, Night blinked and stopped when she noticed that her grandmother was asking her a question, "Night did you hear me?"

"No, sorry I as thinking," she smiled, "It's a dangerous past time," Marcus snickered, Abigale nodded and snickered as well, " I asked dear if you like Marcus as much as he adores you." Night giggled nervously.

Pulling her hand away from Marcus, she reached up and rubbed her neck, "Well...I like him as a friend and I really don't find how he likes me so much. I'm a human, he's a pure blood, and well...if he and I were to have children, his blood line would be ruined...I... I don't think that I could do that to him. Besides I'm going to Japan." Markus nodded and smiled.

"Cross Academy, am I correct?" Nighten nodded, "You do know that they do not allow vampires in that school anymore, due to the fact that there was an incident." Blinking quickly, Night raised her eyebrow high, "What incident?"

"Well,"Marcus began, taking a deep breath in before he began again, "There was a student there that provoked a vampire, who in turn attack the student and the student died." Night huffed, "Is that why there was that news report and the special gatherings of all of the ambassadors?" Markus nodded, "Yes, the reason why it was to amended the treaty,and when the trial was held for the said vampire, he got of with nothing, wasn't sentenced to die, only had to pay a fine. The parents were clearly not happy about this new revelation and so the treaty was amended, favoring humans over vampires now."

Though, Night felt that... the kid kinda deserved it. He provoked the vampire, and death was to be expected, and he should have known that. Right?

Much of that night continued on like that, with the occasional play time with Akina, Nighten really didn't remember much of it, in fact, she spent most of the time looking out the windows, wondering if she could survive in Japan. Yes, she could speak fluent Japanese, but yet...she didn't know if she wanted to spend the next two years in Japan, living in a dorm. Could she really do it?

**3:45 am end of the party**

When the party died down and most of the guests left, the Karama family had stayed behind to help clean, Nighten was given the task of holding their daughter and making sure she didn't wake. "Do you think it's really the best idea to be sending her to Japan so she can try and find other pure bloods to talk to, let alone other vampires. I mean, she is only seventeen in fact she just turned seventeen, will she really be alright?" Abigale huffed, putting most of the wine glasses in the dish washer. Matthew huffed, Abigale's husband, "She will be fine, she's a strong girl, and don't forget, she was the best at the Hunter's Association when she was a hunter."

Nighten had been a hunter, but had been forced to resign due to a certain mission.

* * *

_'I remember everything, everything was so clear, like a the crystal goblets that my grandmother uses for her parties. My parents, Cathrine and Jonathan Winters, told me when I was ten that I was going to be like them, I was going to get rid of monsters so the rest of the people were safe, I would be a hero. Like the people I read about in the comic books that I bought from the local comic shop. I wouldn't have those amazing powers, I would be given a gun, a scythe, needles, wires, or whatever weapon I excelled most in. _

_I remember the first exam, I even remember the ride over to the ancient marble building. _

_The sky was dark, it was going to rain. My parent's little black car zoomed on the freeway, inside the car my parents were talking. My father, saying he wanted me to excel using daggers, like he did. My mother saying that she wanted me to excel using custom 9mm glocks. I was trained in both, and I was good with both. But I was better with my mom's 9mm's better than I liked the throwing daggers. I liked the smell of the gunpowder, how I looked when I shot the guns, or how I always seemed to hit my targets._

_When the car pulled to a silent halt and I pulled myself free of the seatbelt and out of the car door, I was scared, like any ten year old child would have been. I rushed to my mother's side.__I clung onto my mother's black slacks, remembering all of the scary faced people, they were all so stern. They looked like my parents. Angry. _

_The building smelt like gunpowder, cleaning supplies, and leather. _

_I remember a man in an outfit that reminded me of my dad's outfit when he would go hunting. A tight white shirt with a black leather jacket. Around his legs were knife holsters. Lots of knives, black boots with silver tips. His hair was spiked, that was the only thing that was really different about my dad and this man. My dad always wore his hair loose, it was semi long and reached about his ears, while this man's was short and spiked. _

_I remember having to follow that man away from my mom. I was put into a room, a room with weapons and clothes. Leather corsets, thigh high boots, black pants, vests, everything and anything someone could imagine. He told me to get into something that fit me and pick out two weapons, two that I thought I could use. I remember going over to this rack of clothes and picking out this black long sleeve sweater and black skinny jeans. I also picked a pair of knee high black boots with no heels. _

_When I went over to the weapons, I knew which ones I would go for, and so did my mind. I instantly reached for the thigh holsters for a pair of 9mm glocks, and a chest holster for several pairs of throwing daggers. When I had gotten done, I was pulled out into an arena...with metal cages and a gate that was darkened, but it too had metal bars. I could hear something. I didn't know what it was until I entered into the ring. _

_They were vampires. Vampires with glowing crimson eyes, sharp nails that were untrimmed, and a mad rage about how they moved and stalked about in the darkness. They were no longer human, they were animals, and they had only the most basic of instinct. To feed, and to kill, that was the only life that they knew. _

_I heard my name being called, and when I was out in the Arena, a heavy metal door behind me shut with a clatter. I was alone in that place , and soon enough the doors opens on the opposite end of the arena. All I knew was that something was running at me, something that wanted to hurt me, to eat me. _

_My first instinct was run, to run away and hide behind my mother and father, while they killed the monster that had a human face. I remember spinning around to be face to face with the monster. I froze, but I remember my mother told me to think of this as a bad dream. I did, I closed my eyes and drew my guns, I fired off the entire clip. _

_Everything was silent, silent like death. When I opened my eyes, a pile of ash lay at my feet. Had I really just killed someone with my own two hands, had I been the cause of something's death, taken its life unable to give it back? I wanted to cry._

_Stupid I know, but I felt that I had done something wrong, had taken something that wasn't mine. Yes, this thing wanted to kill me, to drink my blood and kill me, but wasn't that all it knew? Wasn't that because someone had taken something from it, and it simply wanted to regain the thing that it had lost? Wasn't it the person who changed that monster, who had once been a person? I blamed the person who had changed the other, the pure bloods. _

_The years pasted by and I remember being noted as one of the most accomplished young hunters of my age. When I first did the test, I was scared, I couldn't do it, but I remember I got braver, but every time I killed something, I felt the guilt, felt the anger, the pity, the sorrow. It felt like a wave crashing down on my head. And I hated it. _

_That was the day that I decided to quit, to be something that my parents hated. To be kind to the vampires, like my grandparents were, to be...understanding. But I didn't choose this at first, in fact, it was thanks to **THAT** one mission that made me kill, or that instructed me to get rid of something that didn't deserve to die. _

_I was out on a routine mission: Execution. _

_I was dropped off in the dangerous sector of the town, where many of the Level E's resided. I was told I could exterminate anything that got in my way, but nothing did get in my way, nothing came after me. Yes I saw the occasional person run away from me, but...I didn't understand why. _

_When I came to the address where the said vampire lived, I entered much the same way that my parents did, burst through the door and aim, ready to kill whatever I had to. _

_I stopped when a man and woman stood in front of me, scared that they were going to die. I dropped my guns to my sides and asked who they were. They explained. I asked if they were level E. They said no, there was Level C, regular vampires, born from vampire parents and human parents. They were just like human beings._

_That was when I knew the order only wanted to kill vampires. It didn't matter if you were good or bad. They wanted the extermination of vampires, and I was simply a tool to be used. I wasn't going to allow that, so I left. My parents shunned me for it and told me to go live with my grandparents. They said I was no better than the blood suckers they killed, those words hurt the most because of the fact that...I never saw them again after that fight. _

* * *

"Night_? _Night? Hey, snap out of it." Night nearly fell over backwards, but regained her footing because the child in her arms stirred and groaned, annoyed that the person she had been sleeping on moved so suddenly.

"Sorry, I was...thinking," she murmured to Mr. Kurama, who stood before her, a smile on his face, like usual. "I asked if you were ready to leave to Japan." Night snickered and shook her head, "Not really, I mean yeah I'm gonna take up your offer but well...I haven't packed or anything. And I don't wanna go over there, have to buy a bunch of new clothes and stuff, you can see what I'm talking about right?"

The man brought a hand up to his chin and rubbed the short goatee that he had growing, only to nod and smile, "No I understand, if you can manage, ." He murmured softly stopping to take a deep breath, letting his hand drop to his side once more in a lazy manor, he huffed and looked back to Night with a serious gaze."Pack what you want, dirty or clean, we will be here tomorrow morning, well tomorrow sometime in the afternoon to collect you, take you on the private Jet and take off for Japan, get you situated in the dorms, and then be off ourselves. My dear do you have a cell phone?" Night shook her head, "We shall get you one once we get over there, so you may stay in contact with your grandmother and grandfather."

So much was happening so fast and yet...time seemed to slow down in these moments and slip away like water in her hands, it was exciting but yet...so very frightening. She didn't know whether to thank the Kurama family, or curse them for taking her over to Japan to go to school. Either way, the proper lady that she was taught to be was forced to thank them for what they were offering. It was going to be expensive and Night knew that, but yet , she hadn't asked for this, and they simply offered? Only because she was hellbent about finding her parents?

People, or rather vampires, both didn't make much sense to her much anymore, and she had given up trying **to **understand them.

When the Kurama family left, Night made her own way up to solitude, her bedroom. The first thing that she did was get out of that dress that seemed to squeeze the hell out of her already slender frame and make it difficult to breath.

The dress was a job in of itself to try and take off, getting it on was easy or so it seemed several hours ago, but now that she was tried and worn out from the party, getting the damnable thing off seemed like a job for a fifteen man team. "Damn dress," she scoffed under her breath, her hands reaching behind her to try and loosen the sinching.

When the string became loosened, and the tight bodice started to pull away from her skin, allowing her lungs to fill with air, Night slipped the the rest of the dress and simply left the red glob of fabric where it was, on the floor.

Making her way over to her dresser, she pulled open the top right drawer of her dresser and pulled out a pair of 'Happy Bunny' pajamas with a little white rabbit smiling widely. Under him the words that were printed were in bright green and black bubble letters, surrounded by glitter, they read 'Cute but Cruel'. Night had only bought them due to the fact that they were in her favorite colors, and because they were soft to the touch.

Making her way over to her bed in a very dead like manor, Night sighed as she flopped on her bed to think. She had to pack, fill up as many suit cases that she could manage with clothes, toiletries, hair care products, and entertainment. She didn't know what to take, or rather what clothes she wanted to take. She was pretty sure that this...Kross Academy place had dances, and she was more than sure that the town where Kross Academy was, offered formal balls for the residence and anyone else there.

With an annoyed groan, Night pulled herself up from the comfort of her bed, and made her way over to her closet to pull out several neon pink suitcases. Sinking down to her knees and pulling on the zipper of one of the oversized suitcases, Nigthen stood back up and made her way over to her dresser. First thing that she had to pack was undies and such, she had to make sure she had enough for a years worth of schooling, or rather two years, she was a Junior to be this year, and if she knew Japan's school system, summer was only going to be another week long. A short break.

She herself had just gotten about about a week ago, and already it felt like she was going to die of boredom. With a shake of her head, Night pulled open the first top right drawer again and just grabbed the handful of clothes that she had and threw them over to the suitcase, it was hardly full.

She continued on in much the same fashion, one suit case completely full of undies, socks, pajamas, and shirts. She still had to fit in there several pairs of shoes, a few dresses, her toiletries, hair products, and pants. So much was still left to do...and it was probably now about four fifty in the morning. She had a feeling she wasn't going to get to go to bed in a timely manor.

* * *

**6:15 a.m**

Finally, after two and half hours, give or take the occasional break to sit down and rest her back. Her packing was finally done, everything that she may need or even consider needing, was packed. Now, as Nighten lay on her bed and looked up at the ceiling light, how it cast shadows on the ceiling, she honestly wondered if she could deal with living in Japan, away from her family, away from everyone she knew. Her friends, her family, everyone, she could honestly admit that it scared her to think that she was alone or rather going to be alone.

But it also gave her the chance to meet new people, be in a different culture, different food, it was something new and she wanted to try it. Slowly her eyes began to sink shut, all she knew was that she was tired and her body ached from standing up, sitting down, bending over, all of the things needed to pack what she needed away. She wanted to sleep, but the light that filtered in through her curtains and the light that lit up the room was a bother, a cause of her restlessness. With a tired groan, Nighten kicked herself up off her bed and made her way over to the light and flicked it off. The darkness that was left was enough for her to get some sleep, even if it were only three or four hours worth. She had at least a fifteen hour maybe short or longer, plane trip to Japan that next day.

Making her way over to her bed, Night flopped back down , kicked the covers back just so she could pull them over her head and let her eyes sink shut. That beautiful and numbing feeling of sleep dragging her down was more than welcome, and unlike normal, she didn't fight the numbing sensation that trickled through her body. For once she let sleep take her.


	3. Plane Rides and Arrivals

(_I know that it has been awhile, but can you blame me? Of course you can, I blame myself T_T Anyhow, I finally graduated! Yay free time...well not really, I gotta start dealing with...ADULT LIFE! Oh noes! It's alright, difficult due to how expensive rent is, but I'm alright, least I'm with my rolly polly panda bear, yay! No more long distance-ness? ANYWAY, back on topic, now that I have some more free time, I'm gonna start writing more, I have this story, and another one that is super, top secret. Anyway, to all of you who are still paying attention to me, here is Chapter two of this new spin off (probably not) of a Vampire Knight story. Yay Nighten!)_

Chapter two: Plane rides and Arrives

**12:30 p.m Kurama's Arrival**

_I'm having that dream again, the dream where a boy in a white and black kimono stands in front of me with his back to me. "Why are you scared?" His voice like liquid silk, the gentlest sound imaginable._

_"Because, I'm going to a place where...where I know no one, where people are so much more different than myself. I have this overwhelming feeling that I won't see my grandparents again, that...those I love will be something that I'm not going to expect. I'm scared, I'll be all alone. I have you and my grandparents, but I'm frightened that you will disappear, just like my parents."_

_The boy didn't move, he didn't even look like he was considering it, rather he just stood there, his back still turned to me. The silence between us was beginning to frighten me more, that was until a soft laugh escaped his lips._

_"I'm not going to leave you, I promise. Just think Nighten, you'll be closer to me. I can keep you safe and see you not only in your dreams, but in reality." I was baffled by his words, how could a figment of my imagination keep me safe, and see me in reality. The boy was just a dream...wasn't he?_

_"I don't even know your name, nor do I know what you look like,"I stammered out, my body urging me to step forward, to try and see this boy's face. But I was frozen, and again the boy laughed, "Child, you will see my face soon, and you will learn my name, but right now, it is time for you to wake." But I didn't want to wake up, I always felt so safe with this boy near me, I felt that no one, regardless of race, could touch me._

_"I don't want to wake up, how will I know that you will come again?" I reached out for him, but the void between him and I, where it had once been only a few feet, now seemed like an ocean. _

_"You'll see me again, I swear on my life, I swear it to you, now wake up. Wake up Nighten, wake up." His voice chimed again and again for me to wake, but I struggled, as I always did. And like always, I fell into darkness._

* * *

Nighten woke with a start, as always, she shot out of bed and sat there panting, a cold sweat dripping down the sides of her face. And just like always, she began to feel the crushing loneliness that she felt when she woke from her dreams. With a shuttering sigh, she began to cry.

"Nighten?" A familiar voice breaks through the soft sobs, and Nighten looked up to her grandmother. The woman looked to her granddaughter, baffled. It had not been the first time that she had come in to find Night crying, her shoulders shuttering, hunched over.

"It was the dream again wasn't it?" Abigale whispered, coming forward to sinking down next to Nighten as she cried. Night nodded, her voice lost to her tears.

"What did he say this time? Did he say anything about your parents?" Abigale knew about the boy in her granddaughter's dreams, that he always spoke to the girl, that he would tell her things that made Abigale seriously question if he was a dream. Nighten sat there silently, looking as if she were searching for a form of inner courage.

"He asked me why I was scared. Grandmother, he seemed different this time. He felt so real, I still haven't touched his clothes, but god I swear I could smell him. His warm scent, I swear that he was real, like you are now."

Abigale sighed heavily and reached a tender hand up to her granddaughter's frazzled hair and smoothed it gently, "Are you scared Nighten? If so why?"

The girl shook her head and pulled herself closer into herself, "Nighten you know you can tell me anything." Night sat there silently, contemplating on whether or not to tell her grandmother her fears. With a deep intake of breath, Night began, "Grandmother, I'm frightened of going to Japan. I mean, what normal person wouldn't be? I'm going to a place where I've never been, I'm going to be in a place where I am utterly alone, where...I have no one there that will look after me, to come to my rescue when I am crying. I'm scared." Abigale nodded gently as she listened to Nighten explain her situation, "I can understand that, if I were in your position I would be frightened too, but you can always come home at any time, you know your grandfather and I will always pay for your ticket home."

Night nodded as she thought about the offer, "Anyway dear, what else did the boy say."

Taking another deep breath in Night tried to clear her head of the haze of remaining sleep, "I told him I was frightened, I told him that I was scared that he was going to disappear. Nana, he's what I cling to, I mean, he's been there since my parents went missing." Abigale nodded again and sighed, "Is there anything else?"

Night nodded quickly.

"For a long while, or so it seemed to me, he stayed silent, and then he said that he wasn't going to leave me, he promised me. But what baffled me most about what he said is that he said that...he'd be closer to me, and that not only could he keep me safe in my dreams, but in reality as well. Nana, this boy, whoever he is, I don't think that he's just a figment of my imagination trying to help me cope with my parents disappearance, I'm beginning to believe that...he's real, and that he lives in Japan."With those words spoken, Nighten looked up to her grandmother.

Both women sat silently for the longest time, both wondering the same thing. Was this child, this boy who haunted Nighten's dreams, real? Was he someone that Night would come to know? The question seemed to loom in the air like a heavy fog, and the answer more evasive than the answers that Nighten was seeking.

"Abigale, is Nighten up yet?" Matthew called from down at the bottom of the stairs, stirring up the question, the conversation that grandmother and granddaughter just had, and make it fade into mist.

"The Kurama's are here." The silence fell upon the room before Abigale turned her face towards the door and yelled back, "Yes, she is up, she'll be down the stairs with her things momentarily. Nighten," Abby reached out and took her granddaughter's hands in hers, "I am no expert on dreams, and I am certainly no expert when it comes to Vampires. Promise me my dear, promise me that you will talk to Mr. Kurama about this, he will know what this means, or I am certain that he will."

Nighten didn't quite understand why her grandmother was so bent on having her ask Mr. Kurama, but the girl nodded, "I promise Nana." Night gave her grandmother a warm smile and the two embraced.

Approximately fifteen later, Nighten descended the stairs in a pair of cut offs and a long sleeved black sweater, her hair pulled up high into a messy bun with small butterfly clips shimmering in the afternoon sun. Several bags trailed behind the girl, and all three adults looked up to the descending child, "Are you ready my dear?"Lord Kurama smiled warmly towards Nighten.

The girls certainly didn't feel it, but she nodded anyway, "Yes sir," she smiled her fake smile. Finally down the last of the stairs, Night looked to her grandparents and smiled, a sad little smile. Abigale was the first to come over and take her granddaughter into her arms. Soft sobs could be heard from the old woman as she held onto her granddaughter.

"Nana I promise I'll write and call every day, alright, it's only two years, and before ya know it, I'll be back." But the words almost seemed hollow as Night let them slip past her glossy lips.

Abby lifted her head up to look at Night, only to smile the best she could, and nod, "I know you will dear, I'll think of you every day." Stepping away from her granddaughter, the woman gave her one last struggling smile before watching her husband take her place in front of Nighten. Just like Abigale had done, Matthew took his granddaughter into a warm hug, "Be a good girl while you're there, and be strong, like your father and I are. I know your as tough as nails my dear. Remember that...your grandmother and I will always be glad to come and pick you up if you ever get home sick."This had made Night begin to cry, "I know grandpa," Night managed out through her tears that now stained her porcelain skin.

Stepping back he smiled to her before he stepped back, Night watched as the man reached behind his neck and unclasp a silvery chain. "Take this, open it whenever you are feeling lonely, remember that we will always be near you." Reaching out and taking his granddaughter's hands, Matthew places the silver chain into Night's hands.

"Thank you," she managed out painfully, her eyes flicking down to the silvery chain, the rather large heart pendent shimmering like a star. "I'll wear it always." Night had just barely finished her sentence before she began to sob.

A silence fell on the room as Lord Kurama waited for the family to finish saying their good-byes. And when they were, he sighed and smiled sadly to both Abigale and Matthew, only to turn his gaze towards Nighten and give her the same pained smile, "Are you ready to leave?"

Night nodded as she tried to wipe away tears.

* * *

**2:30 a.m. On the plane, ready for take off**

For someone who had never been on a plane before, this experience would have been terrifying, but for Nighten, it was almost second nature, the only exception was that the plane was not crowded and she had as much foot room as she wanted. The family had taken their seats, Nighten beginning to day dream.

Who was the boy that she constantly saw in her dreams? No he didn't come to her every night, often she would dream of her parents, but when the boy did visit her in her dreams, they would always talk. The scary thing was it was never about the same thing. Often he asked how she was feeling, how life was treating her, and Nighten,trying to find a way to cope with her parents disappearance, would tell the boy everything. She was an open book to him.

"Night did you hear me?" Again a voice broke the girl out of her thoughts and blink with the 'deer in the head lights' look. "No, sorry I was...day dreaming." Partially true.

"I asked if you are sure you want to go to Japan. This is a big step for you, if you change your mind we can leave right now and drive you back home." The offer was tempting, but Night sighed and shook her head, "No, I need closure on all of this, and my gut is telling me, for that to happen, I need to go to Japan, to attend Kross Academy, and seek out another pure blood," Lord Kurama looked up from his hands and nodded.

"I completely understand. Anyway back to business, now I said that we would buy you a cell phone in Japan correct?" Night nodded, "My wife and I have agreed that we will allot you one hundred dollars a month for youf own things. But use it wisely." Night again nodded and smiled, feeling that the conversation was through, she turned her attention back towards the small window.

_"I'm not going to leave you, I promise."_ Over and over again Night repeated the boys voice in her head, maybe she had heard the voice before, maybe she knew this person?

"Night, are you listening?"Again the Lordships voice made Nighten turn her face away from the window again and look at him with the same surprised look, "No, day dreaming."

This time the man laughed before he cleared his throat and smiled, "Your grandmother said that she wished for you to talk to me before we actually touched down in Japan. Would you like to talk about it now?" Night had nearly forgotten about promising Abigale that she would speak with Mr. Kurama about the boy in her dreams, "Uhm...yeah...she wanted me to talk to you about this boy in my dreams." The girl's gaze had dropped down to her hands before she had begun to speak. Now, looking up to Mr. Kurama, she was surprised to find him looking...surprised.

"Alright, what does this boy exactly do?" That was the question that Night had been dreading, along with all of the other questions to follow, "Well," she began, "We talk." The surprised look didn't leave, "About?"

Clearing her throat and letting out a sigh of hesitation, Night began, "We talk about all sorts of things. He's asked me how life has been, if things are going well, and we talk about my parents." The moment she finished, a silence hung in the air for a long while.

"Your...parents?" What didn't the man understand, "Yes, we sometimes talk about my parents. But last night was different, last night, when I saw him, he asked me if I was frightened. I told him yes of course I was because I was afraid he would disappear just like may parents did. He promised me he wouldn't, in fact he said something along the lines of, 'Not only will I be able to keep you safe in your dreams, I will be able to in reality.' My grandmother was surprised to hear this, well...so was I! I though the boy was just a figment of my imagination trying to help me cope with my parents up and leaving, but how can a figment tell me that he will protect me? I'm beginning to question if this specter truly is just a specter...or not."

Again the same silence from before hung in the air but was quickly removed by Nighten, "My grandmother said to talk to you and-"

"Stop! There will be no more talk of this boy. Night, for the safety of your own mind, do not think of this boy any longer, just...forget about him. You are correct to believe that he is just a figment of your imagination." Many times before Nighten had talked to his Lordship, and in her history of knowing the family, not once had she ever heard Mr. Kurama raise his voice to anyone, not even his own daughter when scolding her. But now it was different.

As Night looked over the man, she could clearly see that he was frightful of her words. His shoulders were rigid and his eyes were beginning to take on the eerie glow of crimson that often vampire eyes would . Regardless, Mr. Kurama had no answer for Nighten, or he was to frightened to talk about them, the day was beginning to make less and less sense to the girl, and the sad part was...it had only just begun.

* * *

**5:30 p.m. Above the Ocean**

_"Where am I," I whispered as I let my eyes slip open, only to find myself surrounded by a world of white. Fog billowed around me, making it even harder to see._

_"Why did you tell him?" The voice of the boy from my dreams answered where I was, "Because my grandmother asked me to talk to him about you? We are both starting to believe that you are more than just a specter. Are you a real person?" I had pulled myself up and was making my way once again to the boy to reach out and touch his clothes, but as usual, I was struck frozen when I got too close. _

_"It doesn't , do not speak another word of me to anyone. If you wish me to keep coming to your dreams, than you must keep me a secret. I have allowed you to tell your grandmother, but this may have been the straw to break the camels back." I didn't know what the boy was talking about, but again I had so many questions for him._

_"What is your name, please, tell me." The boy was silent for a long while before he shook his head, "I told you before you would find out my name. Wake up Nighten, __wake up."_

_Again he was telling me to wake up, why? It always seemed that whenever I was getting close to finding something out, the boy would always instruct me to wake up. As always, I tried to fight it, and as always I lost._

_

* * *

_

**6:20 p.m.**

Again Night woke with a start, but instead of waking up to silence, and waking up sobbing, she awoke to **_Halestorm "It's not You"_**, the song was more than a welcome distraction to all of the craziness of her dreams, of the conversation she and Mr. Kurama had or rather the lack thereof, but regardless it helped clear her mind.

Blinking, she sighed heavily and looked down towards the small lime green ipod that sat on her lap, "When did I-" Night for the life of her couldn't remember when she had switched the small musical device on.

"You didn't turn it on, I did," the Kurama's daughter smiled from across the way, making Night smile awkwardly at the child, "Why did you do that Akina?"The child sighed and leaned over onto her elbows, "Because you kept begging someone not to wake you up, besides, daddy told me you needed to wake up from _**the**_ dreams, said they aren't healthy for you." There was that tone that frightened Nighten, the grownup sounding voice, the maturity that a five year old should NEVER posses.

With a heavy sigh of her own, Night fell back against the seat and let her eyes flick to the crimson, orange and pink sky, "What were you dreaming about?" The child's sweet voice made Night turn her attention back to the silvery haired girl and blink. "Uhm...my parents," she had to lie, it was obvious that Lord Kurama wanted nothing further mentioned about the strange boy in Nighten's dreams.

"You're lying," the child hissed out, her sweet glance turning vicious, her normally blue eyes flickering red for only the briefest of moments. Night felt her heart begin to thrum against her chest, "I was dreaming of a boy."

Everything returned to normal the moment Night spoke the truth, "What is his name." Night sighed once more and let her gaze flick away to the changing sky, "I don't know." The child's face changed into a mask of wonder, but she did not press on, rather the child turned to her doll and smiled down to the perfect porcelain face, the ever unchanging, youthful face.

"Have you ever had dreams like that Akina?" The girl looked up from her doll and shook her head, "No, daddy told me that if I were to ever have a dream where a person is talking to me, to wake up or kill the person in my dreams." The words that left the child's lips made Night shutter. A five year old talking about killing someone, it was more than frightening.

Much of the flight was silent, and for what silence there was, Night had allowed herself to pull out a hard covered sketch book, the cover was decorated with a cherry tree in full blossom, the silky petals of the pink flowers fluttered down to the earth in the arms of an invisible breeze. The entire book was filled the the nameless and faceless boy. Most of the pictures were of the two of them, but a good portion were of the boy and just what he wore. Small notes were scribbled here and there, to remind Nighten of each encounter.

* * *

**Hours Later **

Finally the family had touched down and Night was more than happy to be able to stand and stretch her legs, yes the chairs were comfortable and she was allowed as much foot space as she desired, but staying stagnate was not something Night did well, and more often than not, she would cramp up and regret it later.

Gathering up her things, Ipod still in hand, playing **_Opa Opa Opapa (Sexy Guy) _**by DJ Makar the chance in sound was welcome to that of Halestorm or Nox Arcana, and it was still doing its job of keeping Nighten's mind busy. After all of her things were gathered, Night was transferred to a Black Escalade, her things thrown in the back.

"Welcome to Takamastu City, home to Kross Academy," those words were something of a binding curse for Night. The girl had had the feeling from the very beginning that once she had left the states, she wouldn't be able to return home.


	4. Welcome to Kross Academy

_(Hello again all! For those who have been reading this story, I thank you and I really appreciate the comments. I was thinking about doing something a little different. For those of you who know what Deviant art is, I would like for those who do draw and who can put up pictures, I would like see a scene from my story. This is all just for funzies. Anyway! Sorry for the absents...again, I have been having the worst writers block in the world, as well as being SUPER busy with work and my adult like, sounds fun huh? Anyway, for those of you still reading, just know when I don't put up a new chapter right away, it means the above statement. Anyway here is Chapter 3! Enjoy!)_

Chapter 3: Welcome to Kross Academy_  
_

_The world around me was white and hazy again, the world of my dreams, I already knew where it was, and I knew that he would be there. I picked myself up from the floor and looked around the hazy white room, if it was a room at all, but didn't see the boy._

_"Where are you?" Silence was the only thing that answered me, and that silence made a pang of terror rip through my body, like a gun shot. The boy had been a lie. The sad thing was that I wasn't surprised. I guess that...both my and my grandmother's assumption about the boy being real was just speculation._

_"You're wrong." His voice echoed through the emptiness of the white world around me. Blinking quickly, I began to spin round and round, looking for my prince in the beautiful kimono, his ebony hair and that porcelain skin._

_"Then where are you," I shot back angrily, feeling in a way that I had been betrayed, "I can't show myself today, not with them so close." Them? Who where them? _

_"Who?" The question was bound to slip past my lips, "The Kurama family." _

_His statement made my eyebrows knit together, "Why, they can't hurt you, you're just a dream." The world that I was use to faded and darkness began to swallow me. Was I waking? No, I was still asleep but, it looked as if the light, the white light that illuminated my dreams was like a candle. It flicked on and off. When there was darkness, I saw crimson eyes, burning eyes that looked angry._

_"I'm not a dream Nighten, you know that! Now listen to me careful because I'm only going to say this once. For a week I will not appear to you in your dreams, rather you must seek me out. Look for me in the city, in the park, I will be accompanied by two others, a boy and a girl. Listen for my voice, seek me out. Now wake up!" _

_

* * *

_

Unlike so many times before, Nighten was not give the chance to fight to wake, rather to her, it felt as if someone had grabbed her shirt and yanked her up and thrown her out of bed.

"I'm glad you are awake, I was beginning to worry that you wouldn't wake," the lordship murmured from across the room where he sat in a dark corner in a plush red chair. Night blinked and tried to untangle the sheets from around her legs, "Why wouldn't I wake?" The man sat in his darkened corner, hardly breathing, hardly moving, a living doll.

"Because at one point you stopped moving, stopped breathing, and I could not hear your heart beating. The strangest thing is that when your heart beat again, you looked as if someone had grabbed your chest and yanked you upward." Nighten had had that sensation but thought it was just her waking. Though a tremor of terror made her shutter, "Wait you said I stopped breathing? I...died?" Lord Kurama nodded, "Completely, but only for a moment. The moment you did I thought I would have to take matters into my own hands and...change you myself.

Change her? Did the man mean he would change a once human being to be a child of the night, a vampire? What would her grandparents say about her being changed, being something that she was not use to being, not meant to be. Not only was that thought frightening, but the thought of going through the change, feeling as if her body is being torn to pieces and feel as if she was shattering into a hundred thousand little pieces.

"Nighten we need to leave, orientation will begin in less than an hour," with those final words the lordship had pulled himself from the chair and exited the room, leaving Night to mull over what he had said, about everything that Henry Kurama had said. The thoughts were unwelcome and as a result, Night had pulled herself up from the bed and readied herself quickly, forcing herself to think of other thing, anything other than being changed.

* * *

**8:45 a.m. Just before Orientation**

When the black Escalade pulled into the parking lot, Night's mouth dropped nearly to the ground, "Are we late?" She gasped out, eyes wide. Cars lined the parking lot, and people were filing in through the ten foot high iron rod fence.

"No, we are in fact early." Lord Kurama smiled from the front seat, making Night's eyebrows knit together, "Early? Yeah." She murmured softly, nibbling at her lip, wondering just how many students attended Kross Academy. "If you are wondering just how many people go here, it is well within the eight hundreds." It certainly wasn't surprising now that Night had seen all of the cars and the people, but regardless, the number alone was huge, the school even more so.

"Wow," she murmured finally able to unclasp her seatbelt and step down onto the hard asphalt, "Charles, make sure that you follow Miss Winters around with her things in hand, is that clear." Charles Jamison was the butler for the Kurama's, he was a younger man with spiked blond hair and beautiful violet eyes, the boy looked no more than twenty but from what Night remembered of him, his eyes would flash crimson every once in a great while. The boy had been a human once, but the Kurama's had found him, lost and on the brink of death. As a favor to him, they gave him the immortal kiss, and in return, he had to serve them for all eternity.

"Yes ma'am." Charles nodded and bowed his head subserviently, making the mistress smirk.

Night didn't wait to start heading towards the gates, rather she was the first one to start walking, followed quickly by the Kurama's daughter, Lord and Lady Kurama, and bringing up the rear with numerous bright pink bags of luggage was Charles. "This is amazing, absolutely breath taking," Nighten breathed out, looking up to the ancient architect. Kross Academy looked like a huge castle, it even had the beautiful done stained glass windows with either roses or angels.

"Yes, Kross Academy is quite the beauty to behold, but only the most privileged attend here, consider yourself lucky Nigthen, not everyone gets to go to a place like this." Her ladyship called out, making the violet banged teen nearly jump out of her skin, "Oh uhm...right. Thank you again so much for everything you have done. There is no better gift than this." The girl was too far gone in her own dream world to even notice that everyone had come to a dead stop in front of one of the larger buildings.

"Hello and welcome to Kross Academy, "a woman's voice echoed out through a series of large speakers, "I hope all of you enjoyed what little summers we have, if you did than wonderful, if not than you are all in for a wonderful time here. I am Cathrine Kross, head mistress to Kross Academy. I wanted to personally welcome each and everyone of you and offer those of you who have never attended Kross Academy a personal tour, of course families are welcome to join. For those of do not wish to partake in the tour, breakfast is being served in the lunch room. Again welcome one and all to Kross Academy."

The speech was short, and Nighten hadn't seen the woman at the podium, rather had just seen the bald head of a man standing in front of her, "Nighten, we are going to leave you with Charles, he will only follow you until you are assigned your dorm room, and then he will follow after us." Things seemed to be moving so quickly that Night was having a hard time keeping up with everything, "Uhm right." She stammered out dumbly, making her ladyship roll her eyes and step closer to her husband, arms crossed.

"Can you blame her Elana, she's not use to such glamor, such prestige. Yes, she does enjoy some of the same comfort of the high life, but for the most part, her grandparents are thrifty, they do not flaunt their wealth like many. Do not blame the girl." Elana looked to her husband and huffed, simply watching the brunette saunter off towards where no one else was. Night was lost in her own world.

"Miss Winters! Wait!" Charles called out from behind Nighten, her bags following behind him, "Come on Charles, this place is amazing!" She called back, lost in her own little world, "Miss Winters!" Charles called again, making Night finally turn and huff, "Wha-" she stopped midstream when he was gone, "Charles?" She called out, everything had changed around her.

No longer was the sun was beaming down on her, but rather she was in a shadowy hallow. Where stone figures were holding perfectly still unmoving, unchanging... dead, "Charles this isn't funny, you know the Kurama's will discipline you if you don't listen."

"I don't care," a voice growled low in Night's ear followed by a blast of hot air against the back of her neck. The girl's body began to tremble, "I'll scream," the first human remake that came to mind, as she tried to force the frantic beating of her heart to slow, "They won't hear you before I've already sunk my teeth into that beautiful neck you so love to flaunt." It was true, Night had been wearing her hair up a lot, and today was no exception. "You'll break the treaty, and you know you wouldn't want that."

A soft whispering laugh tickled Night's ear, Charles hands were still full but the moment his fingers release the luggage, they clattered to the ground and found a new home at her sides, "Just one bite," he whispered, his lips caressing the girl's neck, "No." She growled out, "It is strictly prohibited to partake from a mortal, living or dead."

"That would be correct Nighten, they sure taught you the rules well when you were a hunter," Henry's voice sounded from the darkness, making Charles step back and drop to one knee, "Forgive me my lord, the girl... she smells, good." Night turned her face towards the kneeling servant and glared, "He is right Nighten, your scent is quiet mouth watering. Though you must forgive the boy, he is new to this vampire life and it is still difficult for him to resist all the heightened smells." Turning her head away from the boy, she sighed and nodded, "You are correct, but next time, if there is ever a next time, I will not hesitate to take measures into my own hands, you and I both know that I am not frightened to fire a gun." The hunter that had been buried beneath years of dust had finally emerged, if only for a second.

Regardless of if Nighten tried to fight the fact that she was a hunter or not, if that her parents were cold blooded killers, the infamous Winters blood line still ran through her veins and there was no denying her heritage.

* * *

**1:30 p.m. Families Saying Goodbye**

After orientation, breakfast, more of the orientation, and lunch, it was finally time for the parents or guardians to say goodbye, one of the hardest things for everyone, everyone that is but Nighten.

"Good luck with schooling and such, and remember to behave." Nighten smiled halfheartedly, "I'm here to learn as much as I can and find my parents, that's it." His lordship nodded and handed the girl a small pink and black bag, "Here is the cellphone and a hundred dollars in Yen, remember use it wisely, good luck again Nighten." And with that the Kurama's turned and left whilst the Winter's child was left to stand in the middle of the crowd of crying families.

Looking around, Night's heart dropped a little, oh how she wished her parents were there to tell her good luck and that they would see her soon, it was almost unfair, "Guess it wasn't meant to be," she murmured to herself, looking towards the girl's dormitory, thinking that all she should do is set up her bedroom and go to bed and begin academy life.

"You certainly look sad," a small blond girl came up beside Night, making her jump. "I'm not sad, just not excited to start school again," the girl giggled and shook her head, "You hide it well too, you must have been a hunter before, right?" Was the girl a freaking psychic?

"I'm sorry what exactly is your name?" Nighten growled out, "I haven't said yet, and neither have you." With a quick huff Night out stretched her hand, "Nighten Winters." The girl started to reach out but stopped, "So you're the Winters family's only daughter huh? I've heard lots about your parents, they've been in lots of magazines, on the front of a few. Really is quite interesting, anyway I'm Luna Hearting, it really is amazing to meet you. You're gonna be a celebrity among the children of hunters, and among those who know the Winters. Though I wonder honestly who doesn't know who the Winters are." Night's eyebrows had knitted together as she listened to the girl, "Great, celebrity status."

Luna snickered, "Anyway what room are you, maybe we are room mates, wouldn't that be a stitch?" Nighten wasn't usually one to judge on first meetings, or rather didn't judge before she really met the person, but so far, Luna was someone she found rather irritating, "Yeah, real stitch, anyway my dorm number is 214." The moment the words left her lips, Luna clasped her hands together and smiled, "We are roommates, it's fate." With a fake smile, Night smiled to the strange blond girl, "Yay, I'm so excited," her faked enthusiasm made Luna smile brighter, "Let's go!"

Before the poor Winters girl had any time to protest the strange blond had grabbed hold of Nighten's hand and dragged her towards the girl's dormitory.


End file.
